With the growth of B2B eCommerce, omnichannel commerce, as well as the rise in self-service purchases, traditional order management systems fall short in addressing the modern demands of B2B operations. To effectively scale and diversify your sales channels, a future-proof order management system has become crucial to sustainable growth.
Keeping up with evolving trends that involve optimized order management comes with its challenges, but with the right strategy they can be addressed, and you can start reaping the benefits of a productive ordering process.
Key Order Management Challenges B2B Companies Need To Overcome
Operational success comes after you’ve identified and tackled common challenges that stifle your ability to track and fulfill orders efficiently. A sophisticated B2B order management system can help you manage those challenges that include:
Siloed Inventory Data
One of the most significant B2B order management challenges is dealing with siloed inventory data. Many companies still rely on enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems that were never equipped to manage inventory across a multi-tier distribution model. When a company sells products through various retailers, partners, channels, and suppliers, having a unified view of inventory becomes essential.
A modern OMS can integrate with existing ERP systems to consolidate inventory data into a single, cohesive system. This level of integration opens up opportunities for accurate data that better optimizes the fulfillment process. With a real-time view of inventory, you can reduce stock holding fees and transfer inventory based on demand spikes and dips, resulting in prompt and efficient order fulfillment.
Meeting Service Level Agreements (SLAs)
Customer satisfaction and loyalty suffer when you’re not meeting SLAs. A modern B2B order management system equipped with end-to-end visibility into your inventory and AI/ML capabilities can help ensure that SLAs are consistently met on top of minimizing costs. Having the ability to predict potential delays, optimize shipping routes, and allocate inventory efficiently, is one way to create a reliable order fulfillment process.
Manual Processes and Workflows
Manual processes and workflows are another significant pain point when it comes to B2B order management. Traditional systems often require manual intervention for tasks such as pricing, ordering, and sourcing, leading to inefficiencies and increased risk of errors. An enterprise-level OMS can automate manual processes, streamlining operations and reducing the likelihood of mistakes. Automation not only improves accuracy but also frees up valuable time for employees to focus on more strategic tasks, ultimately boosting productivity and customer satisfaction.
Logistics of Shipping Bulky Orders
A distribution center that doesn’t properly plan for or have the equipment to manage a bulky order can run into some of the most unique challenges. With the right B2B order management system, you’ll have the tools you need to set order routing rules based on the needs of your distribution center, as well as prevent delays and reduce shipping costs. The result is a well-oiled distribution center that can handle the complexities of shipping bulk orders.
Industry Regulations
Compliance with industry-specific regulations and standards is a critical component of B2B order management. Non-compliance can lead to consequences that compromise the success of your business like fines and reputation damage. An advanced OMS can help ensure that all orders comply with the relevant regulations by automating compliance checks and maintaining up-to-date records. This capability reduces the risk of non-compliance and provides the peace of mind you need while navigating highly regulated industries.
Custom Pricing
B2B companies often deal with complex pricing models, including volume discounts, tiered pricing, and customer-specific pricing. Managing these diverse pricing structures by hand can be challenging and prone to mistakes. A modern OMS supports various pricing models, allowing businesses to easily implement and manage custom pricing strategies. This flexible pricing improves customer satisfaction by giving them a full view of pricing based on the agreement made.
Overcoming B2B order management challenges requires a full view of your fulfillment process that robust and flexible OMS provides. When you unify inventory data, automate manual processes, optimize logistics, meet compliance requirements, and support custom pricing, you’re well on your way to transforming your order management process.
For businesses looking to stay competitive in this ever-evolving marketplace, investing in an innovative B2B order management system is no longer optional – it’s a necessity. Kibo offers a modern and modular order management system designed to keep your customers happy and your business thriving. Our order management system gives you the autonomy to:
- View, segment, and allocate network-wide inventory in real-time
- Intelligently source and route orders to meet SLAS and control costs
- Customize fulfillment options
- Put customer first with better customer service and care
- Leverage rich reporting and analytics
From order captures, processing, and fulfillment, to tracking, your order processing challenges can be solved with one click with Kibo. Explore our eCommerce order management software to learn more about our capabilities.